Laura Dekker sailed safely into Saint Martin on Saturday after circumnavigating the world solo on her boat Guppy. Laura is 16 years old and grew up in the Netherlands. She was born on a boat off the coast of New Zealand, and has loved sailing all her life.
Laura’s plans to sail the world caused a lot of controversy as Dutch social services opposed the voyage, arguing that the trip would be too dangerous and detrimental to her development. It has a been a topic of debate in the media worldwide, with many people seeing such high risk attempts as reckless and as being driven by childish notions of stardom.
In her blog, Laura seems to contradict these opinions, stating she does not mind that The Guinness Book of Records will not acknowledge her attempt, and that sailing around the world is just something she has always been driven to do for herself. Reading Laura’s blog you get an idea of how much skill, care and independence the voyage demanded… to say the least. She is clearly an amazing young woman!
